Chapter 37: Instance Cleared

Qiong Cang adjusted her expression and said, “Lu Sheng is already wavering. If you confess now, it can still count as turning yourself in. What do you say?”

He Jueyun sneered. “I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

Qiong Cang rested one hand on her chair, leaning back casually, her tone light and relaxed. “I told him, ‘You’re not handsome, you don’t have money, you’re not young anymore, and your income is unstable. What does Li Yujia see in you? At most, she just sees someone simple and easy to use. You threw away the rest of your life for her just because of a casual remark. How naive.'”

“Hmm?” Qiong Cang paused, then smiled. “Don’t you agree?”

He Jueyun shot her a cold laugh in return and fell silent, adopting the exact same stance as Lu Sheng.

Qiong Cang said, “What did you use to make him cooperate? Money? His crime is already established anyway. Even if he implicates you, he’s still going to prison. But if you just share a tiny fraction of your wealth to appease him, it would still be more than Lu Sheng could earn in a lifetime. That is indeed very tempting.”

His eyes were unfocused, as if he were spacing out, completely ignoring her words.

Qiong Cang watched him for a moment, then moved her gaze away from his face and continued, “You had a miserable time during your seven-year marriage to Wu Ming, and couldn’t help but seek comfort in someone else. Although Lu Sheng’s financial situation was poor, he was simple. To him, you were wealthy, powerful, and of a higher social status. When someone like you treated him gently and as an equal, it made him feel grateful, and he unconsciously fell in love with you over time. He then became a tool in your hands, easy to use and unlikely to betray you. But did you really like him? I don’t think so. After going through that marriage with Wu Ming, could you really fall in love with another man so easily?”

He Jueyun took a breath and forced a stiff smile. “If you called me here just to make these baseless accusations, you might as well save us all some time. Criminal investigation technology improves every year, yet your methods of solving cases are still so outdated. Can’t you keep up with the times?”

Qiong Cang said, “I still hope you will turn yourself in before I present the evidence.”

He Jueyun shook his head. “You really are quite boring.”

“Then let me tell you something interesting.” Qiong Cang crossed her arms and leaned back. “Wu Ming’s autopsy report is out. Guess how he died.”

He Jueyun finally reacted. His gaze sharpened, and he turned his face toward her, whether intentionally or not.

“You must be curious too. Wu Ming didn’t actually die from you pushing him. Fate seems to love playing jokes on you. This time, it finally sided with you, but unfortunately, you didn’t grasp the opportunity.” Qiong Cang said, word by word, “Wu Ming was indirectly poisoned to death by Zhou Langxiu.”

Even He Jueyun showed a look of stunned disbelief. He asked subconsciously, “What did you say?”

Qiong Cang nodded and repeated firmly, “The medicinal wine Zhou Langxiu prepared for Wu Ming contained various toxins because the dosage was too high and some of the herbs were improperly processed. After drinking it long-term, Wu Ming developed symptoms of chronic poisoning. That night, after you left, he died in an accident. But in essence, that accident was heavily related to his chronic poisoning.”

He Jueyun fell silent after hearing this. He hung his head low, showing no reaction, seemingly digesting the news. Before long, his shoulders began to shake, and a muffled laugh rumbled in his chest.

Qiong Cang watched him without moving.

Finally, He Jueyun burst out laughing, his laughter growing louder and louder. When he raised his head, a few tears squeezed out from the corners of his eyes.

This was Li Yujia’s actual reaction upon learning the truth. She felt a genuine sense of relief, mixed with the tragedy of her own life. She realized her life was an absolute farce, best described as utterly absurd.

“Serves him right…” He Jueyun cried with laughter. “Thank you, this is the best news I’ve ever heard. So Zhou Langxiu finally got what she deserved? What is she doing now? Can I go see her?”

Qiong Cang said, “She’s probably living in denial.”

He Jueyun continued to laugh, unable to speak, a trace of color returning to his originally pale face.

Qiong Cang watched him quietly and said, “Now, let’s talk about you.”

She opened the folder in front of her, pulled out a few photos, and lined them up.

“On the night of the 28th, you drove out from your home. On the way to Ms. Yu’s house, it suddenly occurred to you that if you were accidentally convicted of intentional homicide, you wouldn’t be able to inherit Wu Ming’s estate. You and Wu Ming had a distant, even hostile relationship. The two of you had just had a violent argument not long ago, and Zhou Langxiu had plenty of complaints about you. On the surface, you had a strong motive for murder. Thus, in your panic after the accidental killing, an extreme idea took hold of you.”

“For someone suffering from a terminal illness, money might not be the most important thing, but you couldn’t bear the thought of Zhou Langxiu enjoying that massive fortune all by herself. So you decided to stage the scene to clear yourself of suspicion. At the very least, it would buy you time to transfer the assets.”

Qiong Cang pressed her finger onto a photo showing two people talking. “You entered a convenience store and borrowed a clerk’s phone to make a call. Our investigation shows that the number belonged to Lu Sheng.”

Her finger moved to the left. “After leaving the convenience store, you secretly hid the villa keys at the bottom of this small flowerbed. A security camera from an equipment store clearly captured this moment. Half an hour later, Lu Sheng, who lived nearby, rushed over and retrieved the keys from the flowerbed.”

He Jueyun looked down at the dim photo, a misty haze still lingering in his eyes. He did not speak up to deny it.

Qiong Cang said, “After arriving at Ms. Yu’s house, you made an excuse and used her phone to call Lu Sheng again. During this call, you learned from Lu Sheng’s description that Wu Ming wasn’t actually dead when you left the house. You were shocked, unable to believe such a coincidence could exist. However, by then, Lu Sheng had already desecrated the body, leaving you both with no way to back out. So you simply had him proceed with the original plan, and you kept the home surveillance footage as your alibi.”

“Three hours later, Lu Sheng appeared in front of this flower bed again and put the key back. At six o’clock the next morning, you drove past, retrieved the key, and headed to the villa. If you claim you didn’t instruct Lu Sheng to do all this, I doubt anyone would believe you.”

He Jueyun smiled.

Qiong Cang rested her chin in her hand and said, “He’s dead now. You can finally be free.”

He Jueyun closed his eyes in silence. Qiong Cang sat opposite him, waiting.

After an unknown amount of time, He Jueyun spoke in a calm voice. “Before we got married, Wu Ming was very good to me. You could even say he was attentive. His family was poor, extremely poor. Our school tuition was already very cheap, but his family’s expenses were huge. He was constantly working part-time jobs and almost ended up in the hospital due to malnutrition. Yet, every time he got paid, he would buy me gifts. I thought he liked me, liked me so much that he humbled himself and didn’t even care about his own life. Only later did I realize that this was just a businessman’s investment in a commodity. To him, I was just a decent stepping stone. A very, very small piece in the blueprint of his ambition.”

He spoke very slowly.

Once Wu Ming achieved success and fame, no one would listen to Li Yujia’s grievances anymore. Wu Ming maintained a reputation as a nice guy in public, crafting the persona of a loving husband. Everyone thought she was a wealthy, upper-class lady living a carefree life. Even if she had any worries, they were viewed as nothing more than minor, trivial complaints to spice up her days.

Subjected to day after day of cold shoulder and emotional abuse, Li Yujia verged on a breakdown, screaming out their crimes even in her dreams.

He Jueyun sneered. “He knew all along that he was infertile. Back then, he stabbed someone and was left with psychological trauma. Later, due to the immense pressure of life, he fell ill and became completely impotent. He refused to go to the hospital, so I had to go instead. At first, I really thought it was my problem. He watched me suffer constantly, looking haggard, sleepless, and running fevers, yet he never asked about it. To the outside world, he claimed that I was the one who didn’t want children, and that he wanted to respect my wishes. Like hell I’d believe him. Just because he became useless, he had to torture me?”

Armed robbery carried a heavy sentence, especially since Wu Ming had stabbed someone. If he had gone to prison back then, he might still be undergoing rehabilitation behind bars today.

One wondered if, on those lonely nights when Wu Ming unexpectedly looked back on his past, any thoughts of regret had ever crossed his mind.

Qiong Cang asked, “Did you never think about getting a divorce?”

He Jueyun said, “I couldn’t accept it, and I couldn’t let go. I wasn’t as cold-hearted as him. I kept remembering how good he used to be to me, thinking he would change his mind. In reality, by the end, he could smash a vase over my head without blinking, then walk away as if nothing had happened. Ha, I didn’t want all those years of affection to go to waste, but the more I invested, the more I lost, until I had nothing left. I’m not a good businessman. In his eyes, I was just a crop to be harvested¹.”

“The human heart is the last thing that should be used as a bargaining chip. Even if you’ve been together for ten or twenty years, once the affection is gone, what accumulates might not be familial love, but resentment,” Qiong Cang said. “That’s why I’m a pessimistic investor.”

He Jueyun remained immersed in his character. “Wu Ming was a hypocrite. He did so much charity work just to cover up his inner unease. The praise from the media and netizens allowed him to forget who he used to be. He could escape punishment for a time, but he could never escape his own conscience. But he was so cruel to me, didn’t his conscience trouble him at all? He could recognize that his past robbery was a mistake, yet in his eyes, I deserved to suffer? Did he ever have even a shred of affection for me?”

Qiong Cang answered silently in her mind.

“No,” He Jueyun answered his own question. He gave a bleak smile. “In the end, I still became just like Wu Ming, using other people. Do you think someone like me is pathetic?”

Qiong Cang stared at him, wanting to applaud. Just as she was marveling at how penetrating and exquisite Brother Q’s interpretation of the character was, He Jueyun’s expression suddenly shifted, and he hastily clarified, “I didn’t make any of that up. Those are all from the original confession.”

Qiong Cang: “…” Are you really not going to extend your shift[^2]?

He Jueyun quickly switched back into character, sighing. “So be it. I confess. Arrest me. At least I won’t have to spend the rest of my life being a pathetic wretch like Wu Ming.”

Qiong Cang: “…” Here’s the question: should this count as Best Actor or Best Actress?

·

Qiong Cang led He Jueyun out of the interrogation room, just as Lu Sheng was being escorted out of the room opposite. The group crossed paths in the narrow corridor.

Lu Sheng looked disheveled. His Adam’s apple bobbed when he saw them, and he couldn’t help but ask, “Can I ask you guys a question?”

Qiong Cang glanced at He Jueyun out of the corner of her eye.

He probably never loved you, she thought. Brother Q is a heartless, cool guy.

“How did you catch me?” Lu Sheng choked out. “I was just playing games. I didn’t do anything. After loading into the game, I was just playing games the whole time. I didn’t even know what I could do. It was only after the plot fast-forwarded and I got the full script that I realized I was destined to miss a phone call. I’ve been… waiting for your call. Miss, how should I address you?”

…Case closed. So it was you!

He Jueyun said coldly, “Big brother.”

Lu Sheng shuddered. “Huh?!”

Qiong Cang said sympathetically, “He means he’s your big brother.”

Lu Sheng: “…”

Lu Sheng swallowed his bitterness and forced himself to deliver his lines. “It’s fine. I don’t regret it. I did everything of my own free will. Jiajia, I hope you can live well and protect yourself.”

Qiong Cang’s assessment: Worth half a cent of acting skills, not a penny more.

The moment he finished speaking, the words “Instance Cleared” drifted across the air.

He Jueyun let out a massive sigh of relief. Without waiting for the countdown to end, he logged straight out of the Instance.

Qiong Cang looked at the suddenly empty space beside her, reaching out to grasp at the air, before ejecting from the simulation pod following the system prompt.

·

The viewers in the Live Stream Room popped up one after another to offer their congratulations.

“Congrats on clearing the game! throws confetti Does this count as an ‘everyone is evil³‘ script? Aside from the extras, there isn’t a single innocent person.”

“There is one. Fan Huai, who tagged along the entire time but only got a name-drop. 【Shocked】”

There’s no need to write off the whole based on a single part. None of them are actually evil to the core. It’s just that human nature always has its ugly sides, and they were simply unfortunate.

Yay!~ It’s a pity the 【Night of Murder】 Instance didn’t trigger on this side, so the big boss didn’t get the million-dollar bounty. A few lucky bastards next door hit the jackpot and triggered it. Still, the big boss’s reconstruction of the crime is the most accurate one so far.

This Instance teaches us that if a man shirks his responsibilities, he really won’t be able to perform. 【wide-eyed】

I was feeling really solemn at first, but then those two goofballs showed up at the end. 【facepalm】 Guess I’ll just throw some confetti anyway.

Translator’s Notes